afc The Mighty Transition: Why Arsenal Haven't Won Anything in 6 Years.

[Heero Yuy]

have another beer you mexican piece of shitf*ckin creasing

[MF Cunt]

safe TFhmm, his soccer team are champions lolhard to judge, tbh thought it might tell me more, and by "more" i mean they are all winnersI assume the Nuggets are the american equivalent of Aston Villa (guess)and american sports (basketball and football espesh) is a bit smash and grab anyways, players and managers moving around where ever the money/best endorsement deals none of this matters though if hes sticking to the "model"

[TF S4DK]

New head executive Jeff Plush had taken over the business responsibilities of the club when he was named Managing Director in January 2006. One of his main initiatives was to re-invent the club with new colors that meshed with the DNA of other KSE clubs, in the form of burgundy and blue, leading the way towards constructing the world's largest and most state of the art professional soccer stadium and fields complex, d*ck's Sporting Goods Park, formulating club-to-club relationships with Arsenal of the English Premier League and Pachuca of Mexico, and ushering in a new era of optimism.

Imagine if he dared...

[mp*]

lol forget Arsenalisation its going to be Americanisation.We gonna be playing in the Walmart stadium and eat corn dogs at half time. ffs/Does Kronke have to absorb our debt?

[MF Cunt]

Corn Dogs>>>>>>the sh*t they serve in the Emiratesup the nacho/burger game aswell, shits awful and expensive

[TF S4DK]

The docs...http://www.plus-sx.com/newsItem.html?newsId=1155659http://www.plus-sx.com/newsItem.html?newsId=1155049http://www.plus-sx.com/newsItem.html?newsId=1156186

[Aquaman]

were f*cked.Hill-Wood & Co continues to stitch up the fansall he cares about is lining his own pockets, they all need to f*ck off and die.

[MF Cunt]

[TF S4DK]

The Russian tycoon Alisher Usmanov has made two counter-offers to buy out one of Arsenal’s biggest shareholders in an effort to prevent a rival businessman gaining control of the Premier League club, I can reveal.Red & White Holdings, the investment vehicle of Alisher Usmanov, offered Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith £13,000-a-share for her 16 per cent stake in the club late last night.I’m told that the offer, which valued the stake at just under £130m, was rebuffed. That was partly on the basis that Bracewell-Smith had already given an irrevocable undertaking to Stan Kroenke, the American who this morning effectively took control of Arsenal Holdings by taking his shareholding to 62 per cent.“It’s difficult to get these things sorted on a Sunday night,” a person close to Usmanov tells me.In fact, the oil magnate found sufficient time after I revealed yesterday afternoon that Kroenke was poised to take control of Arsenal to make two bids for Bracewell-Smith’s 15.9 per cent stake.The first, I’m told, was at £12,500-per-share, and the second was lodged at £13,000-per-share.Red & White’s offers were also rejected on the basis that while Kroenke has made significant efforts to forge close ties with the hierarchy at the Emirates Stadium, Usmanov has had a distinctly cooler relationship with the club’s board.Usmanov owns just over 27 per cent of Arsenal, so acquiring Bracewell-Smith’s stake would have taken him to 43 per cent, while Kroenke would have been 46Under City takeover rules, both would have been obliged to make offers for the rest of Arsenal’s shares. As it stands, Kroenke's vehicle KSE has agreed an offer with the board to pay £11,750 for each of the outstanding Arsenal shares.So what will Usmanov do now?Well, it seems unlikely that he can now mount a credible counter-offer that would not involve paying what you and I would call silly money for Arsenal (even if you’re a die-hard fan).So he can either sell his 27 per cent shareholding for what I’m told would be a modest profit, or he can sit tight and cause a headache for Arsenal’s new owner.I’m told that the latter option looks much more likely.

£11,750 is the current rate.If Usmanov prepared to pay 13g's a share then he cant sell for that amount, I think Silent Stan will have to hit the 15k mark.

[mp*]

Hes got mad p though.. he could buy the shares for dumb amounts if he wants to.. hmm

[MF Cunt]

is there any truth in Arsene Wenger saying that he will leave the club, if Usmanov comes in?

[TF S4DK]

I think thats nonsense and comes from the current board, as if Usmanov did takeover we would all likely assume David Dein would be made chairman, plus if Wenger did say that then even me would say Wenger has lost his competitive nature and should go.

[Heero Yuy]

Alisher Usmanov is today “considering” whether to sell his 27 per cent stake in Arsenal to Stan Kroenke, Goal.com UK can reveal.The Uzbek-born billionaire and his business partner Farhad Moshiri are the club’s second largest shareholders and their stake is crucial to Kroenke taking private control.Sources close to Usmanov have told Goal.com UK that the pair were completely unaware before the story broke on Sunday afternoon that Kroenke had reached agreements to take his personal shareholding to 62 per cent.Usmanov’s investment vehicle Red and White Holdings has an offer of £11,750 per share on the table from Kroenke and, although he has said in the past that he does not want to sell, it could be one that is impossible to refuse.His total stake is worth a combined £198 million, which would represent a tidy profit for the third richest man in Russia, who has acquired his holding at various prices ranging from £8,500-£11,500 per share over the last four years.“We are considering the offer,” a Red and White source told Goal.com UK. “But there is no strict timetable at the moment.”Usmanov and Moshiri are waiting to receive the formal offer document from Kroenke’s company, Kroenke Sports Enterprises. Once the offer is received it triggers a window of between 21 days and three months for shareholders to either accept or decline it.Usmanov’s current holding does not give him any say in the day-to-day activity at the club. He is entitled to four seats in the director’s box at Emirates Stadium but has not been invited on to the Arsenal board.Kroenke has said today that it is not his intention to de-list the company from Plus Markets – the junior stock exchange on which they are traded - and take Arsenal private.But once he gets above 75 per cent, he would be in a position to do so and if he acquires more than 90 per cent of Arsenal’s shares, he could consider a compulsory purchase of any remaining shares. This would mean that Arsenal’s 1,200 minority shareholders would have no choice but to cash in their holding.

[MF Cunt]

The Arsenal Supporters Trust will not be selling their shares to prospective new owner Stan Kroenke after voting 'unanimously' to retain a stake in the club.Kroenke triggered a full takeover on Monday when he secured a controlling stake in the club and the American businessman is now obliged to make a mandatory cash offer for the remaining capital.Arsenal's board has recommended all shareholders accept the offer, priced at£11,750 per share, but the AST are reluctant to allow one person to take sole control of their club.The supporters, who are not opposed to Kroenke's investment, added they were encouraged to hear that Russian businessman Alisher Usmanov plans to keep hold of his 27 per cent stake.SKY SPORTS ON SKYThere's more live football on Sky Sports than ever before, including the Barclays Premier League, UEFA Champions League, Clydesdale Bank Premier League, England away Euro 2012 qualifiers and La Liga. With four live Sky Sports channels, as well as Sky Sports News, you'll never miss a moment on Sky. Click here for more.More than 100 members met in London on Monday to discuss the proposed takeover and an AST spokesman said: "Arsenal is too important to be owned by any one person."The AST wants to work with Stan Kroenke to keep Arsenal supporters involved in the club's ownership structure."The AST and the Arsenal Fanshare scheme will not be selling the shares it owns and urges all supporters to reject this offer."In just six months the Arsenal Fanshare scheme has gained 1800 members who have invested £500,000 in Arsenal shares."This scheme has been widely praised across the football community and is supported by the Government who are currently reviewing football's governance structures.'Encouraged'"AST is encouraged to hear Red & White plan to keep their shares. They have previously stated their long-term commitment to the club and this decision would be a good demonstration of that."The AST were encouraged by Kroenke's confirmation that his takeover bid will not be financed by debt secured against the club, but their support is strongly dependent on the retention of fan involvement in the ownership of the club.AST officials met with Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis on Monday and received assurances that Kroenke recognises the importance of a supporters' stake in the club."The Arsenal board supported Arsenal Fanshare and Stan Kroenke was a member of the board at the time," added the AST spokesman."Stan Kroenke has also previously told the AST that he sees supporter shareholders making an important contribution to the club and that the AST provides 'independent perspective to the shareholders, board and management'."The AST spoke to Ivan Gazidis on Monday, April 11 and he reiterated the importance he places upon fans' involvement in the club and stated his commitment to custodianship."The AST is encouraged that Kroenke's offer states that he does not intend to 'de-list' Arsenal from the PLUS markets."In the next few days we will seek further confirmation of his plans in this area and would like to see more detail on this subject in the formal KSE offer document."

[MrJibbles]

Good on the AST!

AST AGM – Stan Kroenke vs Usmanov + some very interesting stuffGeoff normally lets me go to full-blown club AGM on his behalf, they’re pretty boring so I wasn’t really sure what to expect of the AST’s version. I arrived at a rather swanky building, greeted by none other than my good friend Peroni… I knew this was going to be ok.Firstly, Nigel Phillips ran through the accounting side of things…Key Info:Wage bill is fairly low when compared to turnover, but don’t kid yourself, the kids aren’t going without their shreddiesThe £110million you see in the cash reserves is bloated by season tickets and is used for operational expenditure like playing Diaby.£25million sits in a secured account to pay down debt. This is a contractual requirement.There is a transfer proceeds account that has the Ade and Toure money in it. We have £35million available for transfers.70% of net sale proceeds must go into the playing squad to avoid a firesale Leeds United type problem.This rule is bypassed by Arsenal when they give out huge contracts extensions.It is estimated that £15million of our wage bill is for paying our expensive commercial team who don’t do very much.AST have asked Arsenal about buying out bad commercial deals, apparently it’s ‘not the Arsenal way’ and it’d be ‘expensive’That 6.5% raise in season ticket prices raised an extra £3-4 million. Hardly worth it for the strife it caused you have to say? Just sell a Diaby and you’ll raise the same revenue.Arsenal announce 60,000 capacity every game to convince fans the ground is full… on average, the ACTUAL gate for games of a non-essential nature have been 5000 short of capacity.John Cross of the Daily Mirror, a self-confessed Gooner was introduced by Tim Payton and told some stories about the Arsenal, the best bits were as followed…Arsenal are the best in the league for Press ConferencesJourno’s used to have a banter with Wenger, he’d talk about anything and the relationship was good. They’d even forgive his faux pas if he asked!This year, Arsenal have scaled down press conferences… this is Wenger’s doing. He feels the criticism has been harsh on him and rumours about his personal life haven’t helped things.Journo’s don’t write the headlines of their stories.Arsenal fans tend to only focus on the negatives, forgetting all the amazing press coverage they recieved during the invincible season.The feeling is that last week, Wenger was under prepared for his meeting with reporters. People were fair with him and they had to ask the tough questions because it’s clear the unhappiness at the ground is no longer the minorityWenger is out of touch with the supporters, he genuinely believes 4th is some sort of trophy or at least worth one.Thierry Henry used to phone up when he received bad press coverage!Arsenal now require a sign off for all interviews, something many journalists do not agree with.He agreed that there is a ‘cheating foreigner’ mentality amongst some sections of the media.We then moved swiftly on to the big news of the night… Stan Kroenke and his buyout ambitions.As part of the agreement, no acquisition debt will be put on the club. That said, he has to own 75% of the club to legally do that anyway.Stan has always Championed supporter involvement, something the AST will remind him of in the coming months.Gazidis has actively been keeping the AST abreast of all the things going on.The rules of the takeover are as followed…You must make a mandatory bid after you pass the 30% thresholdYou then have 28 days to make an offer. Realistically, if you’re a shareholder, expect that offer in 2-3 days (It’ll be 90 pages long)There will be three choices, accept, reject, do nothingThe offer price will be £11,750 per shareThe vibe at the AST is that most minor shareholders won’t sell up. Most of the people who would have sold have already done so, the remaining people owning shares are holding onto them for sentiment. There is also the feeling that the offer document almost declares that Stan doesn’t think he’ll be buying more than his 62%. To take the club private, he’d have to buy up 90% of the remaining shares, which equates to a 93% holding. Usmanov not selling will put paid to a total buy out.Stan will be loyal to the board short-term, he’s had to be, they’ve sold him their shares. Long term, the feeling is the board will take a new look and we’ll bring on some of the expensive commercial team who by then, will have made an incredibly large comical ball of elastic bands… you know, due to the inaction in their roles.A few more tid-bits…Stan cannot write a cheque for Arsenal tomorrow. He’s paying for the shares he’s bought out of cash flow.Usmanov being involved keeps the fans involved. If he sells, we hand power to a single man who let’s be clear, we have no idea about. Being American and wearing a silly hat does not mean he’s going to be great for the club. It’s also worth noting that Usmanov was prepared to dilute some of his shareholding to the AST if Stan matched his share offering one for one. Guess what? Stan said no…On the topic of Fanshare, since its inception, 50 shares are now in the hands of the AST. That’s £500k of hard-earned put in by Arsenal fans. Is there a club in the world that could muster that sort of support for part ownership? Not very many… that is an incredible achievement and one you should all be proud of. Too much slagging goes on about Arsenal fans… generally from the people who don’t put their hands in their pockets.Peter Hill-Wood was given a ribbing from all sections of the AST yesterday. His comments should absolutely not be tolerated on any level and there have been many examples of people who have been caught out digging out the fans and their fates have always been the same… removal. I fully support the removal of Peter Hill-Wood from club and hopefully it’ll happen sooner rather than later. His comments were out of touch, unprofessional and wholly expected. Move him on and start a fresh… bring back Dein, the time is right.Many people say Le Grove and the comments section is out of kilter with what ‘real’ Arsenal fans think. Well, I’ve always staunchly disagreed with this idea. If you go to the ground, you’ll know what the vibe is like and people aren’t happy. It’s no longer a minority. As was pointed out to me, a minority want Wenger out, the majority are unhappy with him and want him to change. This was a view shared by fans spanning generations. That was clear from last nights meeting. So don’t listen to people telling you that you’re a bad supporter for being concerned.Overall, the event was very interesting, the most important thing to come out of it was that the AST will be recommending that all small shareholders and Fanshare owners do not sell out. Fan involvement is essential to the future of Arsenal. We need people speaking up for the club at all levels, by going private, we lose that power. I’m not pro either party taking over, I’m pro keeping our club special, I’m pro fan involvement and I’m pro for long-term stability and a return to winning ways.Matt Scott of the Guardian made a very interesting comment about dissenting voices. It’s pertinent because many fans think it’s disrespectful to disagree with the club, the manager or the board…‘As Arsenal fans, speak up, don’t become what you perceive Pat Rice to be to Arsene Wenger’Absolutely spot on, this club is where it is today built of the back of fan loyalty, we have a right to an opinion… don’t ever forget that.Hopefully the way things are playing out, we’ll keep our voice at the club.That’s a healthy position to be in.See you in the comments!P.S. It was great to meet some of the good guys from twitter prior to the event and it was fantastic to have few beers with the AST members, the gooner journo’s plus two prominent figures from the Gooner. I also met Maria, one of Arsenal’s most prolific fans.To say it was an orgie of Arsenal would be an understatement… I’m off to shower down.http://le-grove.co.uk/2011/04/12/ast-agm-stan-kroenke-vs-usmanov-some-very-interesting-stuff/

[Guest Portuguese]

Afellay + 30m for Fabregas this summer.sounds about right!

[TF S4DK]

[Taurus]

Messi + 30m for Fabregas this summer.sounds about right!

[Seydou]

Afellay + 30m for Fabregas this summer.sounds about right!

Doesnt sound right, but is possible it could happen.

[Natty]

45 mil + or barca can f*ck right off

[Heero Yuy]

Afellay + 30m for Fabregas this summer.sounds about right!

happened on FM yeah?

[Young £]

something just dont seem right

[TF S4DK]

Regarding

[Lenny]

Apparently Fiszman has passed away.

[MrJibbles]

Danny Fiszman 1945-2011It is with great sadness that Arsenal Football Club announces the death of Danny Fiszman after a long battle with illness. He was 66.Danny, who joined the Board of Directors in 1992, was a much loved and respected figure at the Club and will be deeply missed by his many friends and colleagues at Arsenal. During his time as an Arsenal Director, Danny, a hugely successful businessman whose love of Arsenal was obvious to all, was a leading influence at the Club. He played an integral role in the Club’s move from Highbury to our new stadium, working tirelessly for many years leading the team which created one of the finest sporting arenas in the world. Arsenal Chairman Peter Hill-Wood said: “Danny Fiszman was a visionary Director, a gentleman and a true Arsenal fan. “We are all deeply saddened by the loss of our dear friend Danny. His voice, wisdom and presence around the football club he so dearly loved will be sorely missed. “Arsenal Football Club will forever be indebted to Danny for his invaluable foresight and contribution during the move from Highbury to our new stadium. “Our thoughts at this time are with Danny’s wife Sally, family and friends. We have lost a much loved husband, father, grandfather and friend.”http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/danny-fiszman-1945-2011

He done LOT for the club, thanks Danny for everything R.I.P.